VJ Edgecombe has one for the history books and the Sixers somehow stymie Boston in Game 2
Edgecombe started his NBA career by creating history. He continued that trend on Tuesday by becoming the youngest player to have 30 points and 10 rebounds in a playoff game.
BOSTON — Two things happened at TD Garden on Tuesday night. One of them may not matter. The other matters more than anyone can imagine.
The first thing that happened is that the 76ers won a game, and they won it handily. It was no small feat, especially on a night that started out looking like a 50-yard sprint off a 25-yard cliff. Two days after losing Game 1 by 32 points, the Sixers spent the first eight minutes of Game 2 getting rag-dolled into a 13-point deficit. A few hours later, they boarded a charter flight back to Philly with a 111-97 win and a first-round series tied at one game apiece.
» READ MORE: Tyrese Maxey’s latest playoff outburst made an improbable Game 2 victory possible: ‘He just wanted them’
Will it matter? Probably not. But they will not get swept. They will not be ashamed to host a home playoff game. They will show up to Game 3 on Friday with their heads held high for a home crowd that otherwise would have preferred if they were the Flyers. All of that counts for something. Just not as much as the other thing that happened.
The other thing? It was big. Maybe not for the here-and-now. Though, who knows? Where it certainly matters is the future. More specifically, the Sixers’ place in it. VJ Edgecombe looked like someone who can lead them there. And he did it while looking like someone who can do it alongside Tyrese Maxey.
Edgecombe’s 30 points and 10 rebounds may not sound all that impressive. Let the history books guide you. In Game 2, he became the first rookie to score 30 points and 10 rebounds in the playoffs since Tim Duncan. He became the youngest in history to do it. He became the first rookie to score 30-plus points in one of his first two playoff games in more than 15 years. That’s a lot of firsts.
The context is what distinguishes him. These weren’t 30 empty points. Twelve of them came by way of four first-half three-pointers that helped erase the Celtics’ early 26-13 lead and gave the Sixers a 62-54 edge at halftime. All but four of them came after he’d exited the game in the first quarter with a back injury, one that would force him to the sideline again two minutes into the second half.
Celtics lead 3-1
Game 1: Celtics 123, Sixers 91 | Murphy: Early offseason?
Game 2: Sixers 111, Celtics 97 | Murphy: Edgecombe steps up
Game 3: Celtics 108, Sixers 100 | Murphy: Reality of this series
Game 4: Celtics 128, Sixers 96 | Murphy: Maxey should be focus
Game 5: Sixers at Celtics, 7 p.m. Tuesday, ESPN
*Game 6: Celtics at Sixers, TBD Thursday
*Game 7: Sixers at Celtics, TBD Saturday
* If necessary
“I mean, he’s been impressive all season long,” Sixers forward Paul George said. “I’ve been saying it all year long, he’s far surpassed what a 20-year-old can do. It’s just impressive. It’s just what we needed in moments throughout this game where he took over and kind of put us at ease.”
Maxey carried them home in the fourth quarter, scoring 12 points to help the Sixers rebuild a lead that had dwindled to two. He was phenomenal, scoring 29 on 11-of-28 shooting including 5 of 12 from three-point range. Together, the rookie and the All-Star combined to score 59 points on 23-of-48 shooting while hitting 11 of 22 from three-point range.
It was a remarkable performance. Edgecombe and Maxey are the only chance the Sixers have in this series. The Celtics have a competitive advantage practically everywhere. Not only do they have two dynamic and complementary bucket-getters in Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, they have a lineup that is as strong and physical as a basketball team can be at all five positions. The Sixers figured a little something out on defense after the first quarter in Game 2, using their big men as a first line of defense against the hard-charging Brown and Tatum. But the Celtics will have plenty of nights when they make a lot of the shots that they missed. The Sixers’ only hope is for Maxey and Edgecombe to keep turning in scoring performances like this.
“It’s just the same kind of reminders, you know, it’s just like, you know, I grab [Edgecombe] and Tyrese together a lot, and just continue to remind them to be super aggressive, fire it up there, like, keep shooting no matter what, you know?” Sixers coach Nick Nurse said. “But it is kind of a conversation you have, and you’ve got to re-have it and re-having and just to make sure they know you mean it, I guess.”
Both had good reason to be gun-shy. Maxey has struggled mightily with his pull-up three-pointer since suffering a finger injury in early March. Edgecombe missed all five of his three-point attempts in Game 1 after finishing the regular season in a mini-slump. But they responded.
» READ MORE: Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe take turns dominating and more from Sixers’ Game 2 win to even series with Celtics
Maxey drilled a three-pointer to stop the Celtics’ 16-0 run in the first quarter. From there, it was all Maxey and Edgecombe:
A deep three-pointer from Maxey to tie the score at 44.
Two straight three-pointers from Edgecombe to give the Sixers a 50-46 lead.
An assist from Edgecombe to Maxey, and then one from Maxey to Edgecombe.
After two more three-pointers from Edgecombe, the Sixers entered halftime with an eight-point lead.
Edgecombe was a revelation. He looked like the kind of scorer who can lead a team at some point in the future. A little more muscle, a little more experience … who knows?
The final line: 30 points, 10 rebounds, two assists, 12-for-20 from the field, 6 of 10 from three-point range.
» READ MORE: VJ Edgecombe, Tyrese Maxey combine for 59 points as Philly evens series
The Celtics missed some shots. More than some. A ton. They went 13-for-50 from three-point range. But that was partially a function of the Sixers defense, which at least forced them out of their drive-and-kick game that torched them in Game 1.
Credit big man Adem Bona and wing Justin Edwards for using their length to help knock Tatum and Brown out of rhythm, and credit the zone looks and inverted coverages that Nurse threw at the Celtics.
Whether it changes anything in the series remains to be seen. But it was a heck of a role reversal from Game 1. And it will echo into the future.
“VJ did his job,” Maxey said. “He did his job. He got us here.”
